Golf swing training device



Dec. 26,1967 J. .1. MOLINARI GOLF SWING TRAINING DEVICE Filed April 26, 1965 INVENTOR JAMES J. MOL INA/Pl ATTORNEV v the ball.

United States Patent 3,360,268 GOLF SWING TRAINING DEVICE James J. Molinari, 55 Chumasero Drive, San Francisco, Calif. 94132 Filed Apr. 26, 1965, Ser. No. 450,802 3 Claims. (Cl. 273-186) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A golf instruction device comprising a body secured by its own resiliency to a club head and including means for providing indicia adjacent the top edge of the club and additional indicia adjacent the central portion of the toe of the club to permit the golfer to ascertain the direction in'which the club face is disposed at impact with This' invention relates to 'a device adapted to be employed in combination with a golf club to enable the user to practice effectively in achieving the proper swing. The

device may also be employed to assist a golf professional in demonstrating to the player the preferred manner of carrying out the golf swing.

It is well known that the most common fault in executingthe golf swing is in not'having the face of the club square with respect to the proposed direction of flight of" the golf ball. Stated another way, an improper "shot'usually results from the face of'the golf not being perpendicular to'the arc ofswing so that the club face strikes theiball withja glancing blow rather than with solid'impact. If the 'face of the club is open at impact the 'ball' will be pushed or will slice. On the other hand, if the toe of the club is turned in and the face is directed inwardly relative to the arc of swing the ball will be hookedi or smothered. Since the proper golf swing is not a natural swing, one of the most difficult things for the golfer to learn is to maintain the golf club face in a square" position at all times during the swing and especially during the lowest portion of the down (swing when the club face is in engagement with the ball at the point of impact.

.The importance of maintaining the proper attitude of .the club face relative to the arc of swing has been uni- 'formly recognized by golf professionals and numerous devices have been proposed for assisting the golfer in maintaining, the club head in the proper position relative to theswing. Numerous schemes have been proposed for indicating the correct position of the club head and especially the club face relative to the arc of swing. (See for example Patents Nos. 1,485,272 and 1,546,612.) The importance of 'a square face at impact has especially been recognized in putting. (See for example Patents No's. 2,503,506 and 3,033,574.) Design patents have also been granted on devices for the same general purpose in connection with putters. (See Design Patents Nos. 11,- 855; 150,497; and 188,677.)

Although the prior prior art recognizes the importance of indicating the proper position of the face of the club,

no practical device has been offered which is adapted to be used with'irons and woods as distinguished from putters. It will be apparent that any heavy and complicated removable device secured to the club head detracts from "ice secured to the club head without affecting the golf swing.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a golf instruction device adapted to be releasably secured to the club head and which device involves a minimum amount of added weight to the club head so as to appreciably affect the golf swing.

Yet another object of the invention is the provision of a golf instruction device which may be releasably secured to the club head without the use of screws and bolts and other adjustment devices characteristic of the prior art.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of an improved golf instructon device which is formed to provide a plurality of uniquely positioned direction indicating indicia located so as to facilitate the understanding of the player as to the proper direction and disposition of the golf club face.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent from the following specification and from the drawings.

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective of the preferred form of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a front elevation of a golf club head with the invention secured thereto.

FIG. 3 is a horizontal section through the golf club shaft showing the club head in plan view with the device secured thereto.

FIG. 4 is a cross section through the club head and the device taken in a plane indicated by lines 44 in FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view showing the arcof a golf swing .with the device in proper relationship thereto.

FIG. 6 is afragmentary cross section through the toe of the club showing the device secured thereto.

First with reference to FIG. 2, the invention is adapted to be employed with any golf club but it is preferably employed with an iron such as a five iron illustrated in the drawings. The conventional golf club is provided with a shaft generally designated 1 secured to the hosel 2 of the club head generally designated 3. The head 3 comprises a face 4 which is adapted to strike the ball and which face is provided with a plurality of horizontally extending grooves 5 parallel to the lower edge 6 of the face 4. As best seen in FIG. 4, the sole 7 of the club is disposed horizontally when the club is rested on the ground in the proper position relative to the ball, and the thickness of the head is usually enlarged as indicated at 8 adjacent the sole 7.

The free end or toe 11 of the club may be rounded or square but usually terminates at a point spaced from the center line of the shaft 1 a distance which is uniform for all clubs of the same loft. The upper edge 12 of the club is usually slantingly disposed relative to the lower edge 6 so that the area available for striking the ball increases from the hosel 2 outwardly.

The present invention comprises a body generally designated 15 preferably formed of yieldable resilient material such as molded rubber and is provided at one end with a generally tubular portion 16 split along its length as indicated at 17 so as to permit said tubular portion to be expanded around the upper thinner portion of shaft 1 and to be slid downwardly to the position of FIG. 2. A split ring 18 preferably made of spring steel may be slid downwardly over the upper open end of tubular portion 16 so as to tightly engage the periphery of said portion for holding the body 15 in its proper position relative to the head 3. The central portion of the device comprises a generally horizontally extending flange 21 which is integrally connected to a downwardly slanting flange 22 provided along its lower edge with a reinforcing rib 23 (FIG. 4).

The outer portion of the body 15 opposite the tubular portion 16 is adapted to engage the toe 11 of the club and for this purpose is provided with an inwardly and downwardly opening slot 24 which receives therein the upper portion of the too 11 of the club head. The distance between the generally vertically extending bottom of the slot 24 and the center line of the shaft 1 is such that the toe 11 is gripped fairly tightly by forcing the body over said toe thus helping to hold the body on the club head by the inherent resiliency of the rubber.

The body 15 is provided with a relatively narrow front face 27 which extends partly down the front of the face 4 of the club adjacent toe 11. Additional frictional resistance for holding the device in place on the club head is thus obtained since the toe 11 of the club also fits tightly between the front flange 27 and the rear flange 22. The front flange 27 terminates at its lower end in a generally horizontally disposed extension 28 which, as best seen in FIG. 4, extends forwardly from the face 4 of the club at a point spaced upwardly from the bottom edge 6.

As best seen in FIG. 4, the juncture between flanges 21 and 22 is formed complementarily to the upper edge 12 of the club head and said juncture is provided with a bevel 30 so that the upper edge 12 of the golf club face abuts the bevelled portion 30 so as to minimize the interference between the flange 21 and the face 4 of the club.

The flange 21 terminates in a rear edge 32 which, when viewed by the player is parallel to the lower edge 6 of the face 4. Secured to the upper face of flange 21 is an indicia sheet 34 which is marked with a plurality of arrows 35. In order to provide a flush upper face on the flange 21 a relatively shallow recess 37 is preferably formed on flange 21 to receive the indicia sheet 34 therein. The sheet 34 may be made of paper, plastic or rubber and preferably the arrows 35 should provide a clear color contrast relative to the flange 21. The indicia sheet 34 may be secured in the shallow recess 37 by means of suitable adhesive or by vulcanizing. Regardless of how the indicia sheet 34 is secured it is essential that the same be positioned so that the arrows 35 point in a direction perpendicular to the lower edge 6 of the club face and the rear edge 32 of the flange 21. At this point it should be noted that the club head 3 is formed with the grooves 5 extending parallel to the lower edge 6 and perpendicular to the line of flight of the ball when the latter is properly struck. By the above structure the arrows 35 indicate the direction the club face should take at impact and, since the face is preferably square throughout the golf swing, said arrows will also indicate the proper attitude of the club head at any point in the golf swing (see FIG. 5).

An extremely important feature of the present invention is the provision of the forwardly extending extension 28 at the lower end of the forward flange 27. Said extension 28 is provided with a shallow recess 39 for receiving therein another arrow indicated at 40. Arrow 40 may be secured in recess 37 by adhesive or may be vulcanized in place as may indicia sheet 34. By providing recesses 37, 39 for the direction indicia 34, 40 respectively, exact positioning of the arrows is insured in the molding process.

The arrow 40 is extremely effective, especially in combination with the arrows 35, in providing a clear indication along the entire length of the club face of the direction which the face should take during the proper swing. Obviously the provision of only one arrow 35, for example, would not assist the player as much as the plurality of arrows shown since the proper direction of the entire club face is important to determine at any point in the swing. Furthermore, the provision of arrow 40 close to the lower edge 6 of toe 11 of the club face visually indicates to the player the proper disposition, during the golf swing, of the lower edge 6. The lower edge 6 must be at right angles to the intended flight of the ball if the golf stroke is to be properly effected.

It will be seen that the above described structure provides an effective golfing aid and can be used during practice by the golfer or may be employed as a teaching aid by the golf professional during a golf lesson. The weight of the device need not exceed about one and a half ounces and this additional weight has little or no effect on the golf swing. In fact, a slightly weighted club head is of assistance to the player during a practice session in giving him the proper feel of the club head. Although it is preferable not to take large divots with the club head when the device is employed, it will be seen that the structure of the device is such that a divot may be taken without impairing the effect of the device and without dislodging it from the club head.

The above described detailed description of the prefered form of the invention should not be taken as restrictive of the invention since it will be apparent that various modifications in design may be resorted to by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. In combination with a golf club head having a hosel, a ball engaging face and a sole intersecting said face in a bottom edge, a golf instruction device comprising:

a body of semirigid resilient material releasably secured to said golf club head,

said body including a generally tubular split portion surrounding the hosel of said club head and an end portion opposite said tubular portion engaging the toe of said club head,

the distance between said portions being such that said club head is gripped between said portions by the inherent resiliency of said material, said body including an upper face extending rearwardly from the face of said club head and provided with an indicium indicating a path of travel at right angles to said bottom edge, said body including an integral extension extending outwardly from said end portion in a forward direction relative to said club head face and spaced downwardly from the upper edge of said ball engaging face for indicating a path of travel perpendicular to said bottom edge. 2. A golf instruction device comprising: a body adapted to be releasably secured to a golf club head provided with a ball engaging face and a sole intersecting said face in a bottom edge, said body including a top portion adapted to be positioned above the upper edge of said head, a portion adapted to grip the hosel of the club head and a portion adapted to engage the toe of the club head,

an indicium on said top portion for indicating a path of travel at right angles to said bottom edge,

said body including an integral extension spaced downwardly from said top portion and adapted to be positioned between the top and bottom edges of said head and project forwardly from said face when said body is secured to said head, said extension being provided with an additional indicium indicating said path of travel.

3. A device according to claim 2 wherein said body is formed of resilient material.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,046,343 12/1912 Smith 273l64 2,923,552 2/1960 Sundberg 273-163 2,950,919 8/1960 Cadman 273-l94 X 3,039,776 6/1962 Faini 273-194 X 3,199,873 8/1965 Surratt 273163 ANTON O. OECHSLE, Primary Examiner.

F. BARRY SHAY, Examiner.

G. J. MARLO, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN COMBINATION WITH A GOLF CLUB HEAD HAVING A HOSEL, A BALL ENGAGING FACE AND A SOLE INTERSECTING SAID FACE IN A BOTTOM EDGE, A GOLF INSTRUCTION DEVICE COMPRISING: A BODY OF SEMIRIGID RESILIENT MATERIAL RELEASABLY SECURED TO SAID GOLF CLUB HEAD, SAID BODY INCLUDING A GENERALLY TUBULAR SPLIT PORTION SURROUNDING THE HOSEL OF SAID CLUB HEAD AND AN END PORTION OPPOSITE SAID TUBULAR PORTION ENGAGING THE TOE OF SAID CLUB HEAD, THE DISTANCE BETWEEN SAID PORTIONS BEING SUCH THAT SAID CLUB HEAD IS GRIPPED BETWEEN SAID PORTIONS BY THE INHERENT RESILIENCY OF SAID MATERIAL, SAID BODY INCLUDING AN UPPER FACE EXTENDING REARWARDLY FROM THE FACE OF SAID CLUB HEAD AND PROVIDED WITH AN INDICIUM INDICATING A PATH OF TRAVEL AT RIGHT ANGLES TO SAID BOTTOM EDGE, SAID BODY INCLUDING AN INTEGRAL EXTENSION EXTENDING OUTWARDLY FROM SAID END PORTION IN A FORWARD DIRECTION RELATIVE TO SAID CLUB HEAD FACE AND SPACED DOWNWARDLY FROM THE UPPER EDGE OF SAID BALL ENGAGING FACE FOR INDICATING A PATH OF TRAVEL PERPENDICULAR TO SAID BOTTOM EDGE. 